Chapter 21: Specters of Past and Present
It has long been a truth in this world that one will want power over others. Such has led to countless sufferings, wars, and strifes. Perhaps the most damaging, long term, to any people who suffer from such in this world, is the specter of colonialism, the sometimes subtle, sometimes violent invasion of one people's homes by another, an outsider, who try to tide the indigenous people over with promises of riches of power, of statehood in a vast, beautiful empire. But all too often, these have been lies. Lies which only erode and eventually destroy their environments and peoples.
- 'To Stand Apart', a manifesto collated from the post chain of 'Providence' on an online forum site, Post 1
The Infinity Box, Early September 2016
The sun rose on a day that had become filled with anticipation. All of the Children had converged on the Infinity Box early in the morning, those that needed what Daniel, and this other 'contact' he'd been so damnably mysterious about, had to offer carried precious trinkets with them. Trinkets that carried the souls of their parents.
As they emerged into the bare room, Kensuke, Ichigo, Misato, Ritsuko, and Maya in tow, Daniel stood from kneeling over a glowing blue and white circle and turned to look at them.
"So, what's the setup?" Asuka asked as she walked to the edge of the intricate circle, filled with sweeping curves and lines that seemed to make up an elegant constellation.
"This is a Containment Inscription, a sort of landing pad for our contact." Daniel replied as he turned back to the circle, kneeling as his Grip appeared in his hand, humming slightly as he regarded it for a moment. "Kensuke and Ichigo will likely become somewhat familiar with this sort of setup, as it allows for contacting and containing Spirits that exist beyond one's Grip."
"Wait a minute." Misato said with no small amount of alarm. "Contain? Is this contact dangerous?"
"Potentially." Daniel replied as he looked over his shoulder at Misato, catching Kensuke and Ichigo inspecting the circle out of the corner of his eye. "Then again, all Spirits are potentially dangerous. It's just a difference of how much so. Most have so little potential as to only be dangerous in extreme corner cases. But they still need someplace with the requisite Metos to manifest into the physical world." he smiled slightly. "It's the same sort of phenomenon that creates haunted houses, under the right conditions."
Misato nodded slowly as Daniel looked back to the circle, the hum of his Grip changing in pitch and tone until it settled on a low thrum. Then he set it into a small opening in the circle in front of him.
The Inscription began to glow, and the thrum grew deeper and louder, seeming to seep into everyone's bones as Daniel stood and stepped back. "Now," he said, "we wait for a moment."
They all stood there, none daring to break the silence that fell on them as they watched the center of the Inscription intently, waiting for… something.
After what felt like ages, something flickered just above the center of the circle, a dot of pale light that expanded into a colorless hole in the fabric of space only a little wider than a man. From that space, a hand, pale blue, thin and with long, similarly thin fingers, reached out, grasping at the side of the hole, another following its lead as it reached for the opposite end. Then, the two hands were followed by long, toned arms, then another pair of hands presaged a head, sleek and cat-like with far too many eyes, that swept the room as its body emerged in short order, floating in the air above the hole for a moment as it disappeared.
Its body was sleek, snake-like with patterns of bright color that rippled and shifted across its body as four of its eight limbs touched down on the Inscription, and it steepled the fingers on its two sets of forelimbs and looked down at Daniel as it towered above him, easily 3 or 4 meters long from head to flicking tail tip, and a predatory grin stretched across a face with 12 eyes.
"Well, well," the Spirit said, its voice a deep purr not unlike the tone that Daniel had used to call it, "why am I not surprised, Daniel?"
Daniel sighed quietly. "Hello, Dham. You know, generally, at least, why I called you."
"Why else do you ask for my services?" the Spirit replied with a chuckle. "After all, you are, perhaps, one of my most… reliable clients."
"And who might you be?" Kensuke asked, trying to mask his uncertainty with bravery.
The Spirit's head whipped over to regard the boy, who stepped back and cringed slightly as the Spirit drew itself up to its full height. "I, my dear boy, am Dhamadren, the Dream-Smith." it replied with aplomb. "I take the elements of the ethereal and, through expert ministration, craft them into physical forms. I have created many diverse wares, including, as it seems is most pertinent when Mr. Theisman calls for me, new bodies for wandering souls."
"How does that work?" Shinji asked as he stepped up, the gem that contained his father's soul clutched in his hand.
"It's quite simple, really." Dhamadren replied as he looked over at Shinji, his body seeming to be dragged behind his head. "You and I will be linked, in one form or another. I will extract the needed resources to fulfill your request." he paused for a moment. "May I assume that you are one of my prospective clients, as judged by the soul held within your grasp?"
Shinji nodded, and brought his hand up, and opened his palm, looking down at the gemstone that glowed within. "Yes." he replied as he looked back up into one pair of Dhamadren's 12 eyes. "But I'm not the only one whose parent needs a new body."
Dhamadren looked at the Children, then the adults who stood behind them, then back at Daniel. "Ah. A batch order." Dhamadren finally said after a moment with a toothy grin. "How many souls will I be working on?"
"Four. All of them are the children's parents." Daniel replied levelly.
"Ah." Dhamadren said as he nodded slowly, the motion undulating through his upper half. "I see. A rare job indeed. But not one without the necessary components."
"What kind of components will you need?" Misato spoke up, stepping forward from Ritsuko and Maya, whose faces were glued to their pads as they studied the Spirit intently.
Dhamadren didn't respond, looking at the four Children, and the souls that they carried, with narrowed eyes, his humming a deep rumble. "Their dreams and nightmares will be particularly potent, with the bonds that they have with my work." he finally said, nodding slowly as he regarded the Children with a critical cluster of eyes.
"Now, hold on, Dham." Daniel interjected. "Their dreams can be yours, but all I'll ask is that you use my nightmares." he said firmly.
Dhamadren sighed. "Such a trite material to work with. I have seen your nightmares before. I seek something new and exciting to fashion these bodies with." he said tartly.
"I haven't called on you in quite some time, Dham." Daniel retorted calmly. "I've accrued quite the store for you to tap into."
Dhamadren regarded Daniel for a moment. "Perhaps." he finally said. "I will see what I have to work with. Your nightmares are, after all, a familiar medium. Though I cannot promise that I will not have to dip into these children's nightmares."
"I can ask that you keep such intrusions to a minimum, however." Daniel said. "I am familiar with your process. They are not as of yet."
Daniel and Dhamadren regarded each other for a moment, neither giving any sign of backing down. Or, at least, any sign that they others could readily interpret.
At last, though, Dhamadren sighed again. "Very well. I agree to your terms." he said, his deep voice laced with resignation. He straightened himself up, extending a hand that all others suddenly realized had two too many fingers on it. "Shall we begin?"
Daniel nodded as he reached into the circle, an invisible wall becoming opaque as his hand passed through it and grasped Dhamadren's. The rest of the group leaned forward as the back of Daniel's hand began to glow a bright green, then faded after a moment as Daniel broke contact, then crouched down to pick up his Grip.
As he lifted it from the circle, the Inscription vanished, and Dhamadren shuddered slightly as he looked around. "I assume you'll create my usual abode when you task me on something?"
Daniel nodded, and a hollow opened up in one wall, two slabs on each side of the cave-like opening. "There you go. One of the kids will deliver their soul so you can begin your work. Can I expect your usual turnaround time?"
Dhamadren nodded. "3 days per soul. No more, no less." he replied.
"Good." Asuka said as she stepped forward. Then, she turned back and looked at the other Children with an uncertain expression. "Do... do any of you mind if I go first?" she asked quietly.
They all shook their heads, and Shinji stepped forward to put a hand on her shoulder. "Asuka," he said, equally quietly, "if there's anyone I'm excited to meet, it's Ms. Kyoko. I'm willing to wait a little while longer for my father."
"Yeah, Asuka." Toji replied. "We're this close. If it's a matter of a couple of days, then go for it."
Hikari stepped forward and wrapped Asuka in a hug. "I'm looking forward to meeting Ms. Soryu as well." she said simply.
"Guys…" Asuka whispered, tears flowing freely. "Thank you."
She took a deep breath, then turned to regard Dhamadren. "So, how is this going to work? Do I shake your hand too, get…" she glanced down at Daniel's hand, now adorned with what looked like a tattoo of a hammer set within an anvil, waves emanating from the top. "Whatever that is?"
"Not at all." Daniel said. "This," he continued as he raised his hand to show everyone the mark on it, "is a Judicator Seal. It allows him to use me as an anchor to the physical world, and is a sign of the contract we've made. I can get three uses out of it to do something that ensures that the contract we've made is maintained, after which time, Dham is free to drop the contract and return to Mentality."
Dhamadren sniffed. "Not that you've ever needed to use it. I pride myself on being a reliable contractor. No, our connection, young miss, will be less formal, and will allow me to work while you sleep, bringing your dreams to the surface and harvesting them."
"Now," Dhamadren continued as he stretched his hand toward Asuka, "may I see the souls, so that I may begin my work?"
Asuka slowly reached out and put the gleaming pill of bronzed metal in Dhamadren's hand. He looked at the other Children. "Come now. I shall need all of them, either now or later." he said.
As one, the three stepped forward, and soon, two of Dhamadren's hands were filled with the vessels for their parent's souls. "Thank you, young ones. I shall proceed to work as the day finishes." he said with a smile. "Thank you for… engaging in my services."
"Thank you for being willing to offer them." Shinji replied.
Dhamadren offered a toothy grin as he turned away. "It is my pleasure to work, young man. Now, leave me, if you would, so I may prepare my workspace."
"We'll leave you to it, then." Daniel said as he began ushering the others out of the Infinity Box, some more willingly than others.
As the door to the Infinity Box closed behind them, Ritsuko, Maya, Kensuke, and Ichigo all turned to Daniel. "So, do you know how his process works?" Ritsuko asked. "To take a mental image, a concept, and turn it into a physical substance of any kind…"
"Is somewhat beyond me. You've described the process about as well as I understand it." Daniel replied. "Spirits, being creatures of Mentality and Pneumaity, are able to bend and sometimes break the rules far more easily than us Interfacers originating from Physicality. There's a reason that many rely on Spirits if they don't learn more than the basics of Interfacing."
He looked over at Kensuke and Ichigo, whose own Grips were now in their hands as they studied it intently. "How long would it take for a Spirit to become that intelligent?" Kensuke asked.
"It depends." Daniel said with a shrug. "Dhamadren is far older than most anything alive here, save maybe Lilith and Adam. How long it took to get to where he is now, I'm not sure. I've seen some Spirits mature more quickly, and more slowly. So… just keep an eye on them."
Kensuke and Ichigo both nodded, and Daniel looked over at the other adults. "So, we'll be planning out the retrieval mission tonight, then?"
Misato nodded. "We've put it off long enough." she replied firmly. "We're getting Eleanor and Rei back."
"And securing the other Units, if we possibly can." Ritsuko added meaningfully.
"Alright, then." Daniel said. "I'll see you three tonight. As for the rest of you," he continued, looking at the children, "go and relax. He's quick, and I've never known him to run late on a task."
"So, quick question before we go." Asuka said. "How does the whole 'extracting dreams' work?" she asked.
"Well, he brings the dreams to the surface of your mind and you'll experience them as he extracts them." Daniel said simply. "It's part of why he works while we're asleep. It's easier on both parties than trying to drag them out during the day."
"Wait, so…" Shinji interjected with a worried look in his eyes. "You're going to be having nightmares for the next week? And that's all?"
Daniel sighed quietly and smiled slightly as he stepped forward and put a hand on Shinji's shoulder. "For you guys getting the chance to see your parents again, it's worth it. I'll survive."
"Thank you." Shinji said quietly. "From all of us."
. . .
5 Hours Later
Daniel Theisman was up on the rooftop of the apartment building again, pondering what was to come as he looked into the distance towards Tokyo-3.
It wouldn't be long now. A few days, then everything would at least be… more to his liking. 'Normal is asking a bit much these days, really.' he thought with a chuckle.
As he looked out and took a deep breath, he could smell the fresh open sea in the air. 'Eleanor…' he thought fondly before his brow furrowed in confusion, then concern. 'Wait a minute.'
He looked behind him and saw four figures in Worldstrider armor, two men and two women, their helmets off as they gazed back at him.
Daniel panicked for a moment, then the panic subsided as he recognized the figures. He stood and turned to face them, walking towards them before stopping a few meters away.
"I see you've decided to grow out a beard, Manny." one of the men said in a carefully measured tenor after a moment, a tall, olive-skinned figure with a mop of black hair who spoke English.
"And it looks like I'm not the only one, Baywatch." Daniel replied as he slipped into English as well, nodding at the man's similarly full beard. "Taking after your father more and more, I see. Nice tan by the way."
"Oh, come on." the man replied as he rolled his eyes. "We both went through Tartarus. That sort of heat will give anyone a tan for multiple lifetimes."
They stared at each other silently for a moment. Then, they both slowly began to smile. Daniel chuckled, and they took each other in an embrace. "Oh, it's good to see you, Percy." Daniel said quietly.
"You too, Dan." Percy Jackson replied as they parted from the embrace and regarded each other for a moment.
Daniel sighed as he looked over at the woman at Percy's side, a fair face and blond hair accentuated by piercing grey eyes and a light dusting of freckles on her cheeks. "Hey, Annabeth." Daniel said as he walked over to embrace her.
"Hello, Uncle Dan." Annabeth replied. "How is Eleanor?"
Daniel opened his mouth, then closed it as he stepped back, glancing over his shoulder at the horizon. "She's elsewhere right now, Wise Girl. We're going to go get her soon." he replied quietly.
It was silent for a moment as Daniel continued to look out, then he looked over at the other man and woman. The man had a fair complexion and electric blue eyes, topped by a shock of blond hair, while the woman had a deeper tone to her skin, like red clay, with eyes that at times shifted from color to color. "Jason, Piper. Good to see you as well." Daniel said with a slight smile. "Where are the others?"
"They're back up on the Festus, sorting things out." Jason replied with a slight smile. "Piper should be there helping, but she wanted to come and say hi. Can't say that I blame her."
Piper punched Jason's shoulder lightly. "They'll be fine. The Outriders are just getting their legs under them, is all. They'll figure it out."
"Outriders?" Daniel asked, a puzzled look on his face.
"Well, before Sovereign Chandra told us you were here and that we needed to get to you as soon as possible, she had us tasked with overseeing the training of the first League Outriders, an organization started by, well, the League of Independent Echoes." Percy explained. "They're kind of like us, but they're fresh to this sort of stuff. Not that they aren't experienced as lone wolves or in twos and threes, but the whole working together as a big team thing has been a… challenge." he settled on with a sigh.
"Interesting." Daniel said with a slow nod. "Well, maybe shaking up where they are might help settle things for a moment. I'll be on my ship this afternoon if the others and the Outriders want to stretch their legs. I imagine the journey here was fairly long."
"You don't know the half of it." Annabeth said with a sigh. "It'll be nice to see your ship. I wonder if you might have a wall of wonders like the one that you've got going on back at home." she said with a smile.
"One with enough to keep you occupied for a while at least." Daniel replied with a chuckle. "And the stories that go along with them will keep you there for even longer."
"Well, I'll let the others know." Percy replied. "And, Colonel Theisman, Chandra did put us under your command when she tasked us with going here. We'll follow your orders. And I'm betting the Outriders will too."
Daniel blinked, mouth slightly open, then chuckled. "Alright. I'll see you in 2 hours then."
"We'll be there." Percy replied. And with that, the four demigods disappeared, leaving Daniel alone on the rooftop once again.
Daniel pulled out his phone and dialed Misato. As she picked up, he fell back into Japanese. "Hey, Misato. Have you and Ritsuko got anything going on in the next 2 hours? If you do, you might want to get Fuyutsuki to do it."
A pause as Misato replied, and Daniel smiled slightly. "Well, some more Worldstriders arrived, along with a group from the League. I'd like you, Ritsuko, and the Children to be present when we greet them aboard my ship. It'll be a nice little party."
A pause as Misato replied. "Alright. We'll figure things out from there. I'll even give you guys an actual tour of the ship alongside the others. Then, we'll figure out what to do with them."
. . .
The Val, 2 Hours Later
Daniel, Misato, Ritsuko, and the Children all stood waiting. Daniel had decided to change into his Worldstrider uniform for the occasion, while the others had changed into their NERV uniforms. They stood in an area designed for accommodating teleporting passengers, looking at the raised platform with no small amount of anticipation.
After a moment, a little under two dozen people blinked into existence on the platform, looking around themselves with wondering eyes.
"Welcome aboard the Gwynevere's Valiant Daughter." Daniel said as 11 familiar faces, and several others both familiar and new, began to funnel off the platform. "I'm Colonel Daniel Theisman of the Worldstrider Corps, for those of you unfamiliar with me. You may address me by either of my ranks, Colonel, or Major as is my rank in NERV, or you may simply call me sir."
"Now, with that said," Daniel continued as the two groups separated themselves, "let's get some introductions out of the way."
He gestured to the people in question as he listed them off. "This is Commander Misato Katsuragi of NERV, my commanding officer. Doctor Ritsuko Akagi and her assistant Captain Maya Ibuki of the Science Division. And First Lieutenants Shinji Ikari, Asuka Soryu-Langley, Hikari Horaki, Toji Suzuhara, and Kaworu Nagisa, our resident giant robot pilots."
The group in front of them nodded slowly before Percy stepped forward. "Hi there. Nice to meet you. I'm Captain Perseus Jackson, and this is my wife, Lieutenant Commander Annabeth. My friends here are Captain Jason and Lieutenant Commander Piper Grace, Leo and Calypso Valdez, Frank and Hazel Zhang, Nico and Will DiAngelo, and Reyna Ramirez-Arellano. Everyone else is a Lieutenant in the Worldstrider Corps. We're looking forward to getting to know you better as we work together."
"Now, if the Outriders would like to introduce themselves…" Percy continued with a restrained sigh.
One in the group pushed to its front, a thin, taller man with a pale complexion who wore a black pinstripe suit with a green vest and white shirt that stood out from the relative simplicity of the rest of the group's clothing, his mop of black hair cascading around a sharp face and discerning blue eyes. "I am Loki Odinson." the man proclaimed in a British accent. "Scion of Asgard and leader of this gallant band of-"
"Loki." Percy interjected with a sigh of exasperation. "We've talked about this before. Leadership is not up to you."
"Well, respectfully, master Perseus, last I checked, I was the full God of Mischief and Trickery, whilst all of you are only half-gods of… whatever pantheon your parents derive from." Loki shot back.
"Loki." Piper said warningly, a subtle something lacing her voice that pulled at everyone's attention.
Loki raised his hands. "My apologies, Mrs. Grace." he said, surprisingly genuinely. He looked back over at the now thoroughly mystified members of NERV. "Future leader of this gallant band of Outriders." he continued. "You may address me as Lord or Sire."
With a sigh, another man, also tall and lanky, put a hand on Loki's shoulder as he stepped forward, gently pushing him back. This man was also pale in complexion with a sharp face, yet his hair was cropped short and red, his eyes a colder blue than Loki's.
"I am Loki Kratosson." he said, his voice a slightly deeper tenor than the previous Loki's. "To prevent any confusion, you can call me by the name my father gave me, Atreus. I apologize for my… compatriot's antics. I am the leader of these Outriders, and I shall keep a closer eye on his behavior for the duration of our stay."
"Well, we have to keep things interesting somehow." Loki muttered as Atreus stepped back.
The next two figures to step up were clearly related, one shorter and with streaks of red in her short black hair that matched her similarly colored attire. Around her neck hung a scarlet scarf, on the end of which sat a single, baleful yellow eye. Her companion was a study of contrasts, tall and wearing white and blue with long, flowing black hair that fell past blue eyes that the two shared.
The short one waved. "Hello. I'm Ryuko. This is my sister Satsuki. Hello again, Daniel." she pulled out a lemon and bit into it, rind and all, forestalling any answers or questions.
Daniel chuckled softly. "Hello again. Good to see that you're both doing well post-Academy."
"And it is good to see you doing well in turn." Satsuki replied, a seemingly natural imperious tone to her voice.
They stepped back, allowing another pair to step forward. This was a couple, a man and woman, the man with bright red hair and brown eyes, the woman with long black hair and blue eyes.
"Hello." the man said softly. "We're Shirou and Rin Emiya. We're accompanied by our three Sabers."
They stepped aside and allowed three women to come to the fore. All were clearly warriors, two with blonde hair, one with black. "These are the Pendragons, Artorias and Mordred," the woman, Rin, said in a clear confident voice, "and this is Jeane d'Arc."
One of the Pendragons, with long blonde hair in a bun, dipped her head. "I believe I speak for all of us, sir Theisman when I say that it is good to see you again."
Daniel nodded. "And it is good to be able to work with you again." he said with a slight smile.
A single woman stepped forward as the five stepped back, tall and pale with short black hair that did not even reach her shoulders, even as it framed her silver eyes and level expression. "Major Motoko Kusanagi, ready for duty." she said levelly. Then, she smiled slightly. "I look forward to working with you again, Colonel Theisman."
"And I with you." Daniel replied with a curt nod.
As Ms. Kusanagi stepped back, another, who seemed to stand head and shoulders above the rest, simply nodded her head, rustling the ponytail of deep red hair slightly. "Greetings." she said with a lyrical voice. "I am Kaerana, Handmaiden of the God-Empress Isha of the Imperium Ascendant." she looked over at Daniel with a slight smile. "The Empress sends her regards to you."
"Thank you, madam." Daniel replied courteously.
Finally, the last member of the Outriders made her way to the front, and it seemed as though the strangest had been saved for last.
First and foremost, she was an anthropomorphic duck, which was perhaps shocking enough, but she was… cartoonish in proportion was the only way to put it. Large, friendly blue eyes sat atop an easy smile that had oddly human-like teeth within the bill, and she waved with a hand that had four fingers on it. Perhaps the most normal part of her was her prosthetic leg, but even that was offset by the fact that, even for her depth and presence in space, she was somehow, quite literally, animated, as if she had literally stepped out of a cartoon.
"Hi. Name's Della Duck." she said, an easy, kind voice. "Pleasure to meet y'all. I'm technically the representative of the Pathfinder Branch, also known as just my family at the moment, so I'm not really with the others, but it's nice to be along for the ride."
It was silent for a moment before Maya spoke up. "I, uh… don't mean to be too rude, Ms. Duck, but how are you… cel-shaded?"
"She's a Toon." Daniel replied. "They're not uncommon, depending on the World Engine. Even here, it's about a... 1-in-40 chance that an Echo looks like the anime. But that number varies from place to place."
"Now, with all that out of the way," Daniel continued, I'd like to give you all a tour of my ship. To do that, I'll have my ship's adjutant join us."
As if on cue, Amaya appeared beside Daniel, and nodded. "Greetings." she said calmly to the group as they looked up at her.
"Oh, hey, Amaya. I wondered if I might see you again when I heard where we were going." Della said as she waved again, her smile widening.
Amaya smiled slightly. "Hello again, Ms. Della." she replied. "It is good to see you out doing what you seem to do best."
This interaction ended in protracted silence as all eyes were turned to look at either Amaya or Della. "Amaya," Daniel finally said after a moment, "how, exactly, do you know Della Duck and I don't?"
Amaya looked down at Daniel with a bemused expression. "Because she tumbled into the ship while you were away after I had taken it looking for you."
"And where, exactly, would you be looking for me?" Daniel asked with an arched eyebrow.
Amaya was silent for a moment as her irises seemed to impossibly slide up, leaving only the whites of her eyes. Then she blinked as she looked down at Daniel. "Records show that you had sparkjumped from Arrakis to a location in the 42nd Millenium. Tracing that location took time, however. Time spent moving from place to place, during which Ms. Della fell into our ship via an errant portal. I gave her a beacon to use to contact the League."
Daniel opened his mouth, then closed it after a moment and shrugged. "Well, that tracks. Anyway," he continued as he turned to the gathered group, "friends, compatriots, let's start that tour, shall we?"
. . .
The tour went off (mostly) without a hitch, and the groups conversed with one another, the Children especially bouncing from person to person as new relationships were made. Shinji seemed to stick next to Shirou, while Asuka and Toji were clustered by Ryuko. Hikari and Kaworu walked beside the Sabers and Motoko, while Misato, Ritsuko, and Maya conversed with Della Duck, moving from one topic to another.
Soon, they found themselves in the Observation Bubble, a place of displays of supreme quality that currently showed the view of the moon and stars. They all stood there for a moment, taking in the majesty of creation, some less reverently than others.
After a few moments, Daniel turned to the group. "Alright. Percy, Annabeth, Jason, and Piper, I'm going to want to talk about your assignment here." he said quietly. "Atreus, if you'd like to follow along, as you are under the wing, as it were, of our Worldstriders. Misato and Ritsuko will be joining us as well. The rest of you, if you are feeling hungry, the Conservatory's food replicator should be able to give you just about anything you'd like. Now, if you'd come with me."
Daniel led the leaders of the Worldstriders, the Outriders, and NERV, out from the Observatory, weaving his way towards his personal quarters.
It was a spacious affair, with deep crimson carpets and steel gray walls and ceiling, a screen taking up a sizable portion of the far wall and acting as a window to look out of. The rest of the wall was taken up by a long, tall display case, within which rested the many keepsakes Daniel had collected. To the left was a massive bed that sat against the wall, and in the center of the room was a long desk, behind which a surprisingly utilitarian swivel chair sat.
"Vordt, do you think you could conjure up a few chairs here?" Daniel asked the open air, and after a moment, there was a whir as the air blurred, and as everyone blinked, the air cleared, and chairs for all present appeared in front of the desk.
"Thank you." Daniel said as he circled around to his desk. "Please, sit."
As they all sat down, Daniel steepled his fingers and regarded the leaders. "I appreciate that you're here, but I must admit, you've arrived at somewhat of an off time. Our biggest threat on this world, an organization called SEELE, has been dealt with, for now at least. Right now, the biggest hurdle we're dealing with is an isolationist movement known as the Lone World, who want the League, all of Reality really, to leave this world be."
"Sounds suspiciously convenient, I have to say." Percy said. "Mysterious, evil organization gets dealt with, and a seemingly innocuous, but possibly dangerous group suddenly becomes a thing."
"That's what we've been thinking." Daniel replied frankly. "We've got the best in NERV intelligence on it, and so far what we've got is an unsurprising reaction that's swept the world with surprising speed and the worrying possibility of becoming violent at a moment's notice with the right ingredients."
"Which is why, right now, your mission, both of your group's missions, is to act as advocates for the Worldsea, Tel and the League alike. I'll direct you to the diplomatic delegations here, as honestly, I'm a military man. Percy, you'll want to link up with…" Daniel paused as a searching look grew in his eyes. "Michio. He's the leader of the Tellan delegation. Atreus, you'll be linking up with Mr. Rastaff, the head of the League delegation. If you need anything from NERV…" he trailed off as he looked over at Misato.
"Our doors are open to you." Misato said firmly. "We may not have much right now, but we'll help you as we can."
"Thank you, Ms. Katsuragi." Atreus replied. "Your assistance will be appreciated."
"Yeah." Percy added as he nodded. "Anything else we need to know?"
It was quiet for a moment before Daniel shook his head. "No. That's about all I can give you right now."
"Got it." Percy replied. "So, I guess it's storytime, seeing as your 'wall of wonders' is right there? I imagine Annabeth's been waiting for this." he continued with a wry smile.
That smile was mirrored on Daniel's face as he stood. "If you'd like it to be, then certainly."
The others stood as well, varying levels of excitement in their expressions as Daniel moved over to the display case, stopping in front of a sheathed hand and a half sword that hung over a hologram of a silver ring with a band of what looked like the night sky in its center. "This is Taltinu, the Comet Blade. I, along with some helpful elves, forged this during the Second Age of Middle-Earth, so that I could combat other Seastriders who had forged Rings of Power for unscrupulous ends. It's forged of a mithril alloy…"
. . .
Misato's Apartment, 4 Hours Later
The sun was nearing the horizon in the Tokyo-2 sky as Misato trudged into her apartment, Ritsuko, Maya, and Daniel in tow.
As the four of them sat down in her living room, Penpen waddling up to snuggle against her leg, she looked over at Daniel. "I've just gotta say again. That stillsuit you showed us can't be comfortable."
Daniel shrugged. "Well, when it's a moment's discomfort putting it on or dying in the desert, you get used to it fairly quickly."
Misato nodded slowly as she lifted Penpen up on the couch to sit with her. "I guess. The rest of the wall was cool, though. Never thought I'd see a percussion cap rifle alongside a lasgun."
Ritsuko nodded absentmindedly. "Yes." she said offhandedly. "I'm just glad that Ms. Duck…" she paused as she shook her head in disbelief. "Ms. Duck agreed to a study. We're going to be the first scientists in the world to study a living cartoon."
"Why not?" Maya replied, equally dazed. "After all, we've made a lot of firsts before. The first study of an S2 Organ, the first study of Angelic DNA, first of Angelic-Human fusion. Why not this?"
Misato nodded, then shook her head as she stood. "Alright. I'm going to need something to wake me up. We need to talk about the retrieval mission." she said with a serious tone.
That alone seemed to wake the other three up at least somewhat, though Ritsuko still nodded gratefully. "Oh, yes. I'd rather have some coffee before we start talking." Maya nodded quickly in agreement.
"Alright, then. Daniel, you want anything?" Misato asked as she began to walk towards the kitchen unit.
Daniel shook his head. "No thanks. Having anything like that around now keeps me up. And I'll be needing to sleep, especially now."
Misato nodded in understanding, and soon, the smell of instant coffee filled the air as the three ladies sipped appreciatively.
"Alright," Misato began, "let's start with what we want to retrieve. Obviously, we want to get Eleanor and Rei back. Likely the Numberless Children's Units as well. But what about the Mass-Production Evas? Lilith itself?"
It was silent for a moment. "Well," Ritsuko began, "we're going to need to see if Lilith has shrunk down any. For that, we'll probably need to send a drone overhead. If its shrunken from what it was, then we can entertain the possibility of using one of the Evas or Titans to move it. As for the MP-Evas…"
"Honestly, they're out of commission." Daniel interjected. "And Kaworu mentioned that the pilots inside were just hollow shells of himself that they Pneumaically knotted together and stuffed into a Plug. If there's anywhere I'm comfortable leaving them for any extended period of time, it's going to be in the middle of a field that tangs people."
Misato opened her mouth to reply, then paused for a moment with a puzzled expression. "'Tangs'? What does that even mean?"
Daniel blinked. "Ah. It's, uh… what the fanbase for the show called getting turned into LCL. Any orange drink could be used."
Ritsuko shook her head. "There's a fanbase for that horror show?" she asked disbelievingly.
"I mean, yeah?" Daniel replied. "But we digress. Regardless of what happens to someone in that field of Corite, it's likely to be the safest place to keep them until we figure out what to do with them."
Misato nodded. "Whatever else, he's right on that. So… what do we do if we can't extract Lilith?"
"Well, someone's still going to have to go in and get them." Daniel said. "The difference comes from whether we need an Eva to project a Field around our exit point to keep us from immediately turning back into LCL."
"Tang…" Maya muttered offhandedly as Ritsuko nodded. "We should only send one person in, minimize the risk. And that person will likely be you."
A smile tugged at a corner of Daniel's mouth. "I was going to volunteer anyway, but thanks for making it easy. So, when do we begin the operation?"
"We'll need about half a day to parse the data gathered by the drone flyover and plot out the quickest path. So… the day after tomorrow?" Maya said plaintively.
"Sounds good." Misato said. "And… after that, I'll want to talk to all the higher-ups in NERV here. I think… I know where we're going next."
The other nodded. "Alright. Well, I'm heading to bed." Daniel said as he stood. "Good night. I'll see you all tomorrow at some point, probably."
"Good night, Daniel." Misato replied. Then she paused. "I hope… the nightmares aren't too bad." she said quietly.
"Thanks." Daniel replied. "It's nothing I haven't dealt with before, though. I'll make it out the other side."
With that, the heads of NERV soon went their separate ways. Today, it seemed, would only be a portent of how busy the coming days would be.